A Storm is Coming
by Nightlock26
Summary: Emily Wayne is the younger formerly estranged cousin of Bruce Wayne. When she comes back, Bruce welcomes her with open arms and vows to keep her safe. But when a masked mercenary begins to make himself known, can Bruce keep her safe? Will a certain young cop be able to do the same? *Set during "The Dark Knight Rises"* *I own nothing but Emily Wayne*
1. Remembrance of Things Past

Emily's POV:

*Flashback*

Two years of living in Gotham City. Two years of being known as 'Gotham's Darling' because I was Bruce Wayne's little cousin and was apparently one of the most beautiful girls living in Gotham. Of course, I also was said to be one of the most beautiful orphans, which the orphan part is true. Like Bruce, I was orphaned at a young age, though my parents weren't murdered by some mugger in the alley behind an opera house. I was just a baby when my parents were killed in a car crash. I never knew them, but I did know one thing and that was that I wasn't supposed to leave Gotham in the wake of some unseen tragedy. I was supposed to stay with my aunt and uncle with my cousin, but instead I was taken away and raised in a different city for twenty years.

Now, twenty years later, here I am in Gotham again looking for my cousin, Bruce. It came as no surprise to me that everyone knew who Bruce was. Our family was basically one of the richest families in Gotham because of Wayne Enterprises. I didn't care about the money one bit. All I wanted was to find the last of my family and let him know that he's not alone in the world. I knew Bruce probably felt that way since his parents were murdered and covered it up from everyone else.

It was easy enough to get to Gotham, but the hard part would be to get to Wayne Manor without attracting too much attention to myself. I knew better than anyone that Bruce was a celebrity of Gotham and that basically anyone associated with him would be stalked by the paparazzi. Thankfully, I was certain that no one would know who I was until news came out that I was Bruce Wayne's last living family member. Of course, from the looks of my casual clothing and nature, I probably wasn't going to be what the press would be expecting at all.

Walking the streets of Gotham at night in the rain, I kept my hood up and my head low to avoid attention from any possible muggers. Still, if anyone did try to jump me, they wouldn't get any money because of my unique hacking skills that kept my money safe. As I kept walking, I thought I heard something past the pouring rain nearby. I stopped to listen, concentrating past the rain until I heard the unmistakable scream of a woman crying out for help. Thoughts of what it must've been like for Bruce running through my head, I ran through the rain to the alley I heard the scream come from.

Not two seconds later, I was standing at the edge of the alley. Inside, I could see two men trying to mug a woman and get her purse away from her. She looked utterly helpless, her shirt torn from struggling and what I thought was blood running from her nose from a possible punch to the face. Gritting my teeth together, I grabbed a nearby trashcan lid and charged at one of the men, smacking him over the head with it. I would've laughed if the situation wasn't so serious with the way he fell over like a ton of bricks, but there was still the matter of the other mugger.

I looked up quickly and saw the other mugger distracted with his friend. Seeing my chance, I grabbed the woman's arm, pulling her towards the entrance of the alley. "Run!" I shouted at her, shoving her. She made some sort of noise that sounded like a squeak, but obeyed nonetheless, scurrying out of the alley. Having saved the woman, I started to run after her out of the alley when strong arms quickly grabbed me, pulling me back in. A cry wrenched its way out of my lips when the man I'd distracted pinned my arms behind my back, leaving me vulnerable. "Mike, get up! I got the little bitch! I got her!" the guy holding me shouted past the rain.

The guy I'd hit, Mike, slowly got up and rubbed the back of his head, malice shining in his dark eyes. Fear sprouted in the pit of my stomach as I saw no way out. I didn't have a weapon to defend myself with and my arms were pinned too tightly behind my back to break free. I struggled frantically as Mike rolled his shoulders before saying, "I'm gonna enjoy this." Then, without any hesitation, he pulled his fist back and sent a hard punch into my gut. I grunted, trying to fight past the pain. Mike delivered more blows to my stomach, ribs, and face until I finally tasted blood in my mouth. My body too weak to fight anymore, I felt myself slump in the other guy's arms before he dropped me to the wet ground. I barely heard them speaking to one another above me before I saw their blurry images running off into the rain.

Hours seemed to pass before I even managed to get close to the alley entrance by crawling painfully. The whole time I wanted to scream, but my ribs wouldn't let me. I feared that if I tried, I wouldn't be able to breathe. Minutes passed with me lying in the alley entrance until I saw the blurred figure of someone cautiously walking towards me in front of some car's headlights. The figure, an old man, spoke to me in a British accent and asked if I was alright, but I couldn't answer. However, before I passed out, I could've sworn I heard him call me Mistress Wayne.

Waking up hours later in the comfiest bed I'd ever been in, I could hardly believe it when the two men standing over me revealed themselves to be my cousin and the family butler, Alfred. Alfred revealed to me that he was the one who found me beaten half to death in the alley and somehow recognized me to be a Wayne. I had no idea how he knew, but I was grateful. Bruce could hardly believe me being there either, but brought me in all the same.


	2. Harvey Dent Day

Emily's POV:

*Present*

"Harvey Dent Day may not be our oldest public holiday, but we're here tonight because it's one of the most important. Harvey Dent's uncompromising stand against organized crime and, yes, ultimately, his sacrifice, have made Gotham a safer place than it was at the time of his death, eight years ago." I shivered slightly listening to the Mayor give his Harvey Dent Day speech. It'd been close to the same thing for the past two years of me being here, but I never got over it. I knew the truth of things. I knew what happened that night.

The Mayor stood at the podium we'd set up on the grounds of Wayne Manor, addressing Gotham's wealthy and powerful. "This city has seen a historic turnaround. No city is without crime. But this city is without _organized_ crime because the Dent Act gave law enforcement teeth in its fight against the mob. Now people are talking about repealing the Dent Act. And to them I say...not on my watch," the Mayor declared. I glanced around me as enthusiastic applause came from everyone else. _If only they knew. They should know_ , I thought, clapping quietly anyway.

I was quickly ripped away from my thoughts as the Mayor spoke again to the party audience. "I want to thank the Wayne Foundation for hosting this event. I'm told Mr. Wayne couldn't be here tonight, but I'm sure he's with us in spirit. We do have our own Miss Emily Wayne, though, which I'd like to personally thank you for hosting tonight," the Mayor said, gesturing down the podium at me. I barely flinched at being addressed in front of so many people. It came with the family name. Nevertheless, I still gave everyone clapping for me a tight smile and nod, despite my dislike for most of the rich snobs on the grounds.

The attention, however, was quickly pulled away from me as the Mayor spoke again and I began to walk away towards the bar. "Now I'm going to give way to an important voice..." The Mayor's voice became nothing to me as my eyes scanned the crowd for Commissioner Gordon. Besides myself, he was the only other person at the party that knew the truth about Harvey Dent and hated these parties with a passion. When Bruce had introduced me to Commissioner Gordon, I'd been a little leary, but we'd soon become rather good friends in the long run.

Getting closer to the bar, I just barely caught sight of Gordon examining some sheets of densely written paper when I stopped, seeing Congressman Gilly muscle his way in past the crowd next to Gordon and Gordon's Deputy Commissioner, Foley. I really didn't care for either of them, especially Gilly. He was a disgusting pig that cheated on his wife every chance he got. I questioned most of the time how he was still married, but I figured she was only still with him because of the money. Foley, on the other hand, was a different story. He was a loyal cop, but was a hothead. Not someone I wanted to associate myself with.

Assuring myself that I was out of their sight, I stayed planted in my spot a few feet away, smoothing out my long dark blue dress. It was rare that I went out dressed like this and I preferred not to have a pervy Congressman drooling all over me. From where I was standing, I could hear every word of their conversation. "Commissioner," Gilly greeted with half assed respect. Gordon barely glanced up at him, nodding his head. "Congressman," he greeted back. I wanted to slap the Congressman with his haughty attitude as his eyes surveyed the people closest to him. "Ever lay eyes on Wayne at one of these things?" Gilly asked Gordon.

My jaw tightened as he brought up Bruce. Typical. Gordon quickly shook his head as he kept examining his papers while Foley cut in. "No one has, except for his cousin and the butler. Not in years," Foley said. At the mention of my name, I caught the sly grin that spread across Congressman Gilly's face. I knew he'd been eyeing me up ever since I got to Gotham and it was revealed that I was Bruce Wayne's cousin. He thought I was just another object he could play with. I watched as Gilly playfully nudged Foley in the arm, saying, "Yeah, Emily Wayne. Cute little number. Wish I could see more of her," he said, giving Foley and Gordon a not-so-subtle wink. I flinched, my insides crawling at the thought.

However, Gordon, being the great guy that he was, leveled Congressman Gilly with an icy look. I could see the anger and annoyance in his posture, but he kept it off his face and voice quite well. "I'd prefer if you didn't speak about Miss Wayne like that, Congressman. She's a dear friend of mine and shouldn't be subjected to things like that," Gordon told him calmly. Congressman Gilly raised a questioning eyebrow, but held his hands up in surrender anyway. Relief filled me as I glanced at Gordon, grateful that he was there to break up that topic. I really didn't need to be talked about like that.

Unfortunately, it was at that exact moment when I turned back to listen to some more of the Mayor's speech that it was one of my least favorite subjects to talk about, as well as Bruce's. "He can tell you about the bad old days, when the criminals and corrupt ran this town with such a tight grasp that people put their faith in a murderous thug in a mask and a cape. A thug who showed his true nature when he betrayed the trust of this great man," the Mayor said, turning and gesturing to a picture of Harvey Dent behind him, "And murdered him in cold blood."

I gritted my teeth together to keep from nearly growling. The Mayor and the whole rest of Gotham had it all wrong. I knew that Bruce was the Batman before I came back to Gotham. It didn't even take me a whole week to figure it out. When I'd demanded to know the truth, Alfred had explained most of it with little input from Bruce as he wasn't so keen on talking about his past at the moment. Bruce hadn't killed Harvey Dent in cold blood. He'd killed him in order to save Gordon's son from being killed by Harvey Dent, who'd gone on a rampage after Rachel's death. The fact that Bruce took the blame to make Harvey Dent look like he died a hero made my blood boil. He shouldn't have had to go down with him.

"Jim Gordon can tell you the truth about Harvey Dent..." I heard the Mayor say. Instinctively, I glanced back at Gordon, not really believing what I'd just heard. Was he going to finally tell the truth about that night? If he did, what was going to happen to Harvey Dent Day and the whole rest of Gotham when they heard the news? Millions of questions flitted through my mind as I watched Congressman Gilly look at the papers in Gordon's hands for his speech. "Jesus, Gordon, is that your speech? We're gonna be here all night," he complained. I admired Gordon as he easily brushed off Gilly's comment, turning to look at him. "Maybe the truth about Harvey isn't so simple, Congressman," he said seriously.

Just then, the Mayor's voice got louder as he raised his hand, waving Gordon over. "But I'll let him tell you himself-Commissioner Gordon?" Quietly, I joined in on the applause as Gordon approached the mic. He looked down at his long speech, apparently thinking before he started to talk. "The truth...?" he said, pausing. This wasn't exactly Jim Gordon behavior. I was practically leaning on every word Gordon was saying, even if it wasn't much. Gordon looked up and surveyed the audience until he stopped and I knew he was looking directly at me, deciding.

Then, without taking his eyes from mine, Gordon spoke. "I _have_ written a speech telling the truth about Harvey Dent..." he said, folding up his speech. "Maybe the time isn't right..." My gut churned as I watched Gordon stuff the papers inside his jacket. I couldn't pinpoint what I was feeling. I wasn't sure if I was grateful or disappointed that Gordon wasn't telling the truth about Harvey. Maybe it was for the best, I don't know. However, my indecisive thoughts were stopped when I heard Gilly talking behind me. "Thank Christ for that..." he muttered, apparently happy that Gordon wasn't reading his long speech.

Annoyed, I turned around and shot Gilly a cool glare. This time, though, he spotted me and merely winked. I fought the urge to curl my lip and smack him. Though it would've felt damn good to do so, I really wasn't in the mood for getting sued or making front page news. 'Gotham's Darling Slaps Congressman At Harvey Dent Day Party' wasn't exactly what I was going for. Doing my best to control my anger, I turned back around to face Gordon as he continued speaking.

"Maybe right now all you need to know is that there are a thousand inmates in Blackgate Prison as a direct result of the Dent Act. These are violent criminals, essential cogs in the organized crime machine that terrorized Gotham for so long. Maybe, for now, all I should say about Harvey Dent's death is this...it has not been for nothing," Gordon said solemnly. I couldn't bring myself to clap with everyone else as Gordon left the mic. However, that was when I noticed a dark figure on the balcony turn back into the mansion in a hobbling motion. _Bruce_ , I thought, my heart squeezing. He probably couldn't stand to be out there any longer after what happened eight years ago.


	3. One Big Happy Family

Finally, after four agonizing hours of dealing with Gotham's rich and snobby, everyone left. Now being alone in the mansion with no one else except for Bruce and Alfred, I took off my aching heels and followed Alfred into the east wing where we knew Bruce was. However, neither of us were really expecting to find Bruce up and kneeling at his safe. Still, Alfred didn't seem to think anything of it. "Miss Tate was asking to see you again," he told Bruce. Bruce didn't look up as he continued tinkering with his safe. "She's very persistent," he muttered. Alfred rocked on his heels beside me. "And quite lovely, in case you were wondering," he added. "I wasn't," Bruce told him.

I rolled my eyes at Alfred's futile attempt at trying to find a way to get Bruce out of the mansion and be happy for once. It'd been eight years since Harvey Dent's death and three since Bruce decided to lock himself inside Wayne Manor. And nothing I did in the two years I'd been here had made Bruce leave. He was the definition of a shut-in.

Clasping my hands together, I cocked my head to the side as I studied Bruce. "What are you doing?" I asked him, trying to get rid of some of the awkwardness Alfred had created. Bruce continued to look at his safe. "Examining print dust. We've been robbed," he answered like it was nothing. I smirked at Bruce. He really wasn't too keen on calling any crimes in even when he wasn't Batman. "And this is your idea of raising the alarm?" I asked him. Bruce simply shrugged, still not looking at me once. "She took the pearls. Tracking device and all," he told us. I didn't miss Alfred slightly perking up at the mention of our thief being a woman. "She?" he asked.

Bruce didn't seem to notice Alfred's reaction, instead sitting up on his good knee. "One of the maids, perhaps you should stop letting them in this side of the house," Bruce told Alfred. I glanced over at Alfred to see him bristling a little bit at Bruce's suggestion. Though I knew Alfred loved and cared for us, I also knew that he got pretty annoyed with our attitudes now and then, especially Bruce's. "Perhaps you should learn to make your own bed, then. Why are you dusting for prints?" Alfred said. Bruce began to shake his head at that. "I'm not. She was," he said.

As he said that, Bruce finally looked up and stared right at me. His eyes narrowed a bit as he took in my dark blue dress. Feeling a little uncomfortable, I shifted nervously on my bare feet as Bruce stared at me. "What? What are you looking at me for?" I asked. Bruce jerked his chin towards me and pointed at my dress. "You look nice," he told me. Surprise filled me at that comment as I managed a small smile. It was rare that Bruce ever got to see me dressed up and even rarer for him to give out compliments. "Thanks," I said. However, being typical Bruce Wayne, he ruined the moment. " _Too_ nice," Bruce added.

Hearing Bruce's tone of voice, I felt my smile fade into a frown of annoyance as I narrowed my eyes at him. I knew exactly what Bruce was doing and I was sick and tired of him doing it. "Stop it," I snapped at him. Bruce thought I was putting too much of myself out in the world for men to see. It was a miracle he hadn't called me a hooker, though I was starting to feel like he had. Bruce shrugged at me again and gestured to my dress. "What? I just don't care to have the men of Gotham drooling all over my little cousin whenever she makes an appearance," he said nonchalantly.

I frowned at Bruce, crossing my arms over my chest. My dress may have been strapless, but it wasn't extremely revealing like some of the dresses I'd seen other women wearing at the party tonight. I was no slut and Bruce knew it. "I'm not a kid, Bruce. I can wear whatever I want," I hissed at him. Past our bickering, I caught Alfred looking between the two of us with a small smile. I looked at him questioningly and didn't even have to ask. "You two are bickering like a real family would in the outside world. It's nice," Alfred said. I flinched at that comment, shaking my head. _If only that were true_ , I thought, walking out. I ignored Bruce's exasperated sigh, knowing that if I stuck around he'd go into an even bigger lecture.


	4. Return to the Batcave

Of course, after out little confrontation, the last thing I was expecting was to be roughly shaken awake in my bed. Knowing Alfred wouldn't wake me up like this even in an emergency and that Bruce wouldn't even be awake, I let out a little squeak of surprise and reached my hand out, slapping whoever was shaking me across the face. I heard a familiar grunt and opened my eyes, seeing Bruce sitting on the edge of my bed, rubbing his cheek. "You hit me," he muttered. I rolled my eyes at him. "Grow up, Bruce," I said.

Glancing over at my alarm clock and seeing the general darkness of my bedroom, I nearly slapped Bruce again. "Jesus, Bruce, it's 5:30 in the morning! Why are you in here?" I hissed. Bruce knew that I loved to get my beauty sleep. If anyone tried to interrupt it with no reason, they were going to have to pay a serious price. Bruce smiled a bit and stood up, leaning heavily on his cane. "Get dressed and come with me. You've got ten minutes," he told me. I raised a brow at his back as he hobbled out of my room, but got up anyway. It was not normal for Bruce to come into my room at this time of day with such a request, so he had my attention.

The moment I was dressed, ready, and out of my bedroom, Bruce appeared out of nowhere and grabbed my arm, leading me down the hall to the study. I had no idea what he was doing until he played the correct keys on the piano that opened up the secret elevator behind one of the bookcases. "Why are we going down there?" I asked, my voice slightly shaking. I hadn't been down in the Batcave for years and for Bruce to just suddenly wake me up extremely early to take me down there wasn't normal, either. Bruce glanced at me as we got into the elevator and he pressed the button to go down. "I need your computer skills. Trace some prints and whatnot," he said.

Hearing that, I started to perk up a bit. Bruce had top of the line equipment that was a hacker's dream to be able to use. And now he was asking me to do just that. Without another word, I did as Bruce asked me to until an hour and a half later, we heard the elevator working again, signalling that Alfred was coming down. I heard the elevator doors ding as they opened and the faint footsteps as Alfred walked into the Batcave. "You haven't been down here in a long time..." Alfred observed.

I didn't look up from the computer monitors as I continued to track the fingerprints Bruce gave me. "Just trying to find out more about our jewel thief. I ran her prints from the photos she handled," I told Alfred, pulling up a mug shot of a fat, male armed-robbery suspect. "But she was wearing someone else's fingerprints. She's good," I said, leaning back in my chair as I looked at Alfred. Alfred nodded. "She may be. But we have the trace on the necklace," he pointed out. I held my finger up to that, nodding along. "We do, so I cross-referenced the address she went back to with police data on high-end B-and-E's..."

Hitting a key, a photograph of a pretty woman with brown eyes and hair appeared on the screen. I looked over at Bruce, immediately noticing his reaction to the photo. It was small, but it was there. This was the 'maid' that'd robbed us. "Selina Kyle. The databases are full of close calls, tips from fences..." I read off. A few newspaper headlines appeared on the screen saying stuff like: THE CAT STRIKES AGAIN, POLICE SUSPECT 'CAT' BURGLAR IN JEWEL HEIST. I sighed, looking at the screen. "She's good, but the ground is shrinking beneath her feet," I told them.

Alfred shifted on his feet, clasping his hands together. "We should send the police before she fences the pearls," he suggested. Bruce quickly shook his head, still staring at Selina's picture on the monitor. "She won't. She likes them too much. And they weren't what she was after," he said. I noticed Alfred's interest piquing again as Bruce said this. "What _was_ she after?" Alfred asked. Bruce shifted in his chair as I got up to stretch out my legs. "My fingerprints. There was printer toner mixed with graphite on the safe. Gives you a good pull, and it's untraceable," Bruce said, me nodding along with him.

Of course, Alfred just had to find a space in there to fill in with his own suggestions. "Fascinating. Maybe you should exchange notes over coffee," Alfred suggested. It took everything I had to keep from snorting as Bruce turned to look at Alfred with a raised eyebrow. "Now you're trying to set me up with a jewel thief?" he asked. Alfred shrugged, his voice getting a bit serious. "At this point, sir, I would set you up with a chimpanzee if I thought it would bring you back into the world," Alfred told Bruce.

I noticed the change in Bruce's demeanor right away before he even spoke. This was a touchy subject. "There's nothing out there for me," he muttered. I knew this was because of Rachel, and so did Alfred, but Alfred continued to push the subject. "And that's the problem. You hung up the cape and cowl, but never moved on. You won't get out there and find a life. Find someone-" However, Bruce interrupted him quickly, not liking where Alfred was going with this. "I did find someone, Alfred," he said bitterly. I felt a pang of guilt as I looked at Bruce. He'd been hurting for so many years and still hadn't healed.

Gently, I set a comforting hand on Bruce's shoulder, which he took and squeezed back. Seeing this must've made Alfred consider what he was saying because I noticed his voice getting gentler as he continued on with the subject. "I know. And then you lost them. That's part of living, sir. But you're not living-you're waiting. Hoping for things to go bad again," Alfred told Bruce. Bruce didn't even respond to that as he continued to hold my hand. "Remember when you left Gotham? Before all this. Before Batman. Seven years you were gone. Seven years I waited. Hoping that you wouldn't come back," Alfred suddenly said.

That caught both of our attentions as Bruce and I looked at Alfred, not understanding. Seeing the confusion on our faces, Alfred didn't hesitate to explain himself. "Every year I took my holiday. I'd go to Florence. There's a cafe by the Arno...Any fine evening I would sit there and order a Fernet Branca. I had a fantasy. I liked to imagine that one day I'd look across the tables, and see you. Sitting there with your wife. Perhaps some kids. You wouldn't say anything to me, or me to you, but we'd both know...that you'd made it. That you were happy," Alfred said.

I glanced down at Bruce as Alfred said this, feeling bad as Alfred continued. "I never wanted you to come back to Gotham. I knew there was nothing there for you but pain and tragedy, and I wanted more for you than that. Both of you now. I still do," Alfred said. And with that, he left the Batcave. Unable to stay in the awkward silence and having been done with what Bruce asked me to do, I gave Bruce's shoulder one last squeeze before leaving shortly after Alfred.


	5. Identity

Two days later, I was walking on the first floor, minding my own business when the doorbell rang. I froze, not really knowing who it could be and not wanting to find out for myself. Quickly, I slipped around the nearest corner as Alfred walked past me to open the door. "I need to see Bruce Wayne," a man's voice said. From the authoritative tone in his voice, I could only guess that he was a cop, and a young one at that by the sounds of things as well.

Quietly, I glanced around my corner to see Alfred shaking his head. "I'm sorry, Mr. Wayne doesn't take unscheduled calls. Even from police officers," he told the cop. Looking past the corner a little farther, I couldn't see the man's face, but I could see his shadow on the other side of the door in front of Alfred. The cop sighed. "And if I go get a warrant, in the investigation of Harvey Dent's murder? Would that still count as unscheduled?" he asked.

Unable to help myself, I smiled a bit. It wasn't every day people went against Bruce's wishes, especially a cop. He had my attention, that was for sure. Having no choice, Alfred began to move aside to let the cop in, so I quickly hid from sight again as he passed by. Alfred, knowing where I was, nodded to me in a silent signal to go get Bruce, which I immediately obeyed.

Bruce was a little leary at first when I told him what was going on, but let me help him down to the study where I knew Alfred had left the officer. I let go of Bruce's arm and leaned against the doorway as Bruce walked into the study. The cop was sitting, drumming his leg nervously until Bruce walked in. From what I could see, the cop was young, looking like he couldn't have been too much older than me. He had short brown hair and brown eyes that all went nicely with his rather handsome face. Glancing at his uniform coat, I saw that his last name was Blake.

"What can I do for you, officer?" Bruce asked him as he hobbled into the study by the window. Officer Blake swallowed hard before he spoke, like the information he was about to tell us was too hard to say out loud. "Commissioner Gordon's been shot," he told us. Hearing that, I immediately straightened up and moved closer into the room, my arms folded across my chest. "Gordon's been shot?" I repeated, not believing what I just heard. Officer Blake looked up at me and I noticed as his eyes widened ever so slightly before he nodded grimly. I couldn't believe it. Gordon had been shot. I looked at Officer Blake again to confirm it and I could tell he was serious as he continued to study me.

However, that was when Bruce turned around from the window he was facing and noticed the two of us staring at each other. No doubt that was bothering him. "I'm sorry to hear that-" Bruce started to say, but Officer Blake cut him off, still looking directly at me as he spoke. "He chased a gunman down into the sewers. When I pulled him out he was babbling about an underground army. A masked man called 'Bane'," he said. That was when I finally noticed all of his uniform. It was dirty from water and whatnot. There was no doubt in my mind that he hadn't even bothered to change before he came here because it was so urgent.

I could hear that slightly annoyed tone in Bruce's voice as he spoke again. "Shouldn't you be telling this to your superior officers?" he asked Officer Blake. Officer Blake nodded and, for the first time in minutes, looked away from me to Bruce. "I did. One of them asked if he saw any giant alligators down there. He needs _you_. He needs the Batman," he told Bruce. I stiffened, glancing at Bruce. How could this cop know Bruce's biggest secret? I knew for sure that he didn't know this guy because I certainly didn't. Nevertheless, I didn't say anything to actually give Bruce away.

Bruce did the same thing as he shook his head. "If Commissioner Gordon thinks I'm the Batman he must be in a bad way-" he started to say, but Officer Blake cut him off. "He doesn't know or care who you are," he told Bruce. He had an off look on his face as he began to talk again. "But we've met before. When I was a kid. At the orphanage," Officer Blake said. I raised a brow at that. This cop was an orphan too? _Small world_ , I thought as he continued on with his story. "See, my mom died when I was small. Car accident, I don't really remember it. But a couple of years later my dad was shot over a gambling debt. I remember that just fine," he said.

Officer Blake looked back at Bruce again as he left the memory. "Not a lot of people know what it feels like, do they? To be angry. In your bones. People understand, foster parents understand. For a while. Then they expect the angry kid to do what he knows he can never do. To move on. To forget," Officer Blake said, his voice serious. By now, he had my full attention and interest as well as Bruce's. Now that he said it, I could pick out the subtle details that told me Officer Blake was an orphan. Over the years, I'd learned to pick them out as I had the same details myself.

"So they stopped understanding and sent the angry kid to a boys' home-St. Swithin's. Used to be funded by the Wayne Foundation. See, I figured it out too late. You have to hide the anger. Practice smiling in the mirror. Like putting on a mask," Officer Blake said. He paused for a moment and his face got excited almost as he went on. "You showed up one day in a cool car, pretty girl on your arm. We were so excited-Bruce Wayne, billionaire orphan. We made up stories about you. Legends. The other boys' stories were just that. But when I saw you I _knew_ who you really were..." Officer Blake trailed off for a moment as he looked at Bruce. "I'd seen that look on your face. Same one I taught myself," he said.

Officer Blake then got up to leave as I noticed Bruce lost in his thoughts. He turned to Bruce one last time. "I don't know why you took the fall for Dent's murder, but I'm still a believer in the Batman. Even if you're not," he said. Officer Blake started to walk past me, but I quickly grabbed his sleeve, surprising myself a bit. He immediately stopped, looking down at me as I looked up at him. Bruce might not have caught what he said before, but I did. "Why did you say your boys' home _used_ be funded by the Wayne Foundation?" I asked him softly. Officer Blake's expression and tone softened as he spoke to me, but changed when he looked at Bruce. "Because the money stopped. Might be time to get some fresh air and start paying attention to the details. Some of those details might need your help," he said, nodding politely to me before leaving.

Moments later, I found myself standing in the entrance hall with Bruce and Alfred, watching Officer Blake drive away from the window. I didn't even take my eyes off his police cruiser as Bruce turned to Alfred. "You checked that name? 'Bane'," he clarified. Alfred quickly nodded, his hands gesturing around as he explained to us what he found. "Ran it through some databases. He's a mercenary. No other known name. Never been seen or photographed without a mask. He and his men were behind a coup in West Africa that secured mining operations for our friend John Daggett," Alfred relayed.

I raised an eyebrow at that, turning away from the window to look at Alfred. "Now Daggett's brought them here?" I asked. Alfred nodded somewhat grimly. "It would seem so. I'll keep digging," he told us. As Alfred turned to leave, I suddenly remembered my question from earlier for Officer Blake. It'd been at the back of my head this entire time and it was bugging me. I knew that I could trust Alfred in getting a straight answer. "Why did the Wayne Foundation stop funding boys' homes in the city?" I blurted out, stopping Alfred in his tracks.

Alfred slowly turned back to face me, thinking. "The Foundation is funded from the profits of Wayne Enterprises..." he started, a slight off look on his face. He shrugged as he glanced at Bruce. "There have to _be_ some," he said. With that, Bruce sighed and slowly started to make his way out of the entrance hall. "Time to talk to Mr. Fox, I think," he muttered. I perked up at that, getting a little giddy. I'd heard so much about Lucius Fox and all of it was good. He was the one responsible for helping make Batman become real, what with the cool gadgets and the suit. I was dying to meet him. "I'll get him on the phone-" Alfred began, but Bruce cut him off quickly.

What neither of us expected was what came out of Bruce's mouth next. "No. Do we still have any cars around the place?" he asked, wagging his finger in thought. I noticed Alfred instantly light up at that question. No doubt he was already making some diabolical plan to keep Bruce out for as long as possible in the hopes that somehow he'd get a girlfriend. "One or two," Alfred said with a small smile. Bruce nodded, hardly paying attention as he glanced down at his leg. "And I need an appointment at the hospital. About my leg," he added. _About damn time,_ I thought. I was getting sick and tired of seeing Bruce hobbling around everywhere with that stupid cane. He needed to be walking around freely like the old Bruce.

At Bruce's other request, Alfred folded his hands together. "Which hospital, sir?" he asked Bruce. I glanced over at Bruce as he stopped with his back to Alfred. "Whichever one Jim Gordon's in," he answered. Before Bruce took hold of my arm, I couldn't help noticing the less excited expression on Alfred's face by this part of the request. He and I could both tell what was going on and I knew that Alfred wasn't a fan of it. Still, I wasn't going to argue with Bruce now.

As we walked towards the stairs, Bruce leaned over to whisper in my ear. "You're helping me get ready. As you can see, it's been awhile since I've been outside," he said. I smirked and patted Bruce on the arm. _Oh, I know,_ I thought. "I can tell, Bruce. You're starting to live up to those rumors. You smell kind of like a hobo," I observed. Bruce chuckled as I helped him up the stairs to his room, shaking his head. This was going to be interesting.


	6. The Bat

After much work on getting Bruce to look presentable for going out in public, I finally deemed him to be looking nice enough. The whole ride to Wayne Enterprises was quiet, save for Bruce's constant fidgeting. I glanced over at him as I drove. I'd be damned if Bruce was about to tell me to pull the Lamborghini over because he was terrified of me driving. I never got to drive Bruce's Lamborghini, only the Land Rover. There was no way in hell I would let him ruin this for me, too.

"What's going on with you? You keep fidgeting," I said, keeping my eyes on the road. Bruce shifted some more in the passenger seat next to me. He sighed as he finally kept still for the first time during the whole ride.

"I guess I'm just not as accustomed to wearing a suit as I used to. It feels so different from the pajamas and robe," he muttered.

I resisted smirking. I guess Bruce had a point. Before today, I didn't think I'd ever seen Bruce in one of the nice suits collecting dust in his closet. The one time I had, it was in a newspaper and he'd also been clean shaven without his cane. Seeing Bruce with his face shaved now, I realized how much of a good job I'd done cleaning him up. I was proud of myself.

"Well, that's no surprise. You basically wore those pajamas to the point where they could walk by themselves without you in them," I commented. Bruce barked out a laugh.

"Very funny. But, I have to admit, you've cleaned me up well," he said. I smiled a bit, coming to a stop at the red light. Bruce shifted a little more to look at me. "So, what was going on with you before you asked? You seemed a little bothered yourself," Bruce observed.

I shrugged, glancing at him. "I assumed you were going to say something about my driving since you kept moving like you had ants in your pants," I admitted.

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "Your driving? That's the least of my concerns when it comes to you," he said.

The light turned green and I stepped on the gas pedal, taking a sharp right turn. Bruce scrambled to grab onto something. I managed to hold back a laugh as I looked over to see a rather frazzled-looking Bruce. "Good. Because there is no way in hell I'm going to pass up driving this car," I told him, taking another turn.

...

After having arrived at Wayne Enterprises and taken a seat in Mr. Fox's empty office, Bruce and I didn't have to wait long for Mr. Fox to return. He looked genuinely surprised to see the both of us sitting in his office as he entered.

"Bruce Wayne. As I live and breathe," Lucius said. I stood to meet Lucius, helping Bruce up as he pushed hard on his cane. Lucius gave me a warm smile as he shook my hand first. "And you must be the lovely Miss Emily Wayne," he said, his handshake firm.

I nodded and smiled. "That would be correct. It's a real pleasure to finally meet you. I've been trying to get Bruce to bring me here for years," I said.

Lucius smiled as he shared a look with Bruce. "The pleasure's all mine, Emily. I'm just glad you've finally been able to come visit your family's company," he told me. Lucius then turned to completely face Bruce as they shook hands. "What brings you out of cryo-sleep, Mr. Wayne?" he asked jokingly.

Bruce halfheartedly smiled as he leaned heavily on his cane. "I see you haven't lost your sense of humor...even if you have lost most of my money," he commented dryly.

Lucius waggled a finger at that, shaking his head even with a smile on his face. "Actually, you did that yourself," he corrected Bruce.

I resisted snorting. Lucius was openly correcting Bruce with no backlash. I was starting to like him already. Bruce pursed his lips as Lucius went on to explain himself and the whole money situation.

"See, if you funnel the entire R and D budget for five years into a fusion project that you then mothball, your company is unlikely to thrive," Lucius explained.

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "Even with-"

Lucius quickly nodded, seeming to already know what Bruce was going to ask. "A wildly sophisticated CEO, yes. Wayne Enterprises is running out of time. And Daggett is moving in," he finished for Bruce.

Bruce sighed, clearly annoyed at that bit of information. "What're my options?" he asked.

Lucius shrugged. "If you're not willing to turn your machine on-" he started, but Bruce cut him off with a shake of his head. "I can't, Lucius," he said resignedly.

With that said, Lucius nodded, accepting what Bruce wanted. "Then sit tight. Your majority keeps Daggett at arm's length while we figure out a future for the energy program with Miranda Tate-she's supported your project all the way. She's smart, and quite lovely," he told Bruce.

That last comment caught both Bruce and I's attention. I nearly had to stifle a little laugh at the look on Bruce's face. So Lucius was on Team Miranda as well. Bruce sighed, looking at Lucius. "You too, Lucius?" he asked.

Lucius simply shrugged at his question, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "We all just want what's best for you, Bruce. Show her the machine," he said.

Bruce seemed to be thinking it over hard in his head before he sighed again, seemingly defeated by everyone telling him to let Miranda Tate in. "I'll think it over," Bruce said reluctantly.

Lucius nodded, moving towards the chair behind his desk. He glanced between the two of us. "Anything else?" he asked, seeming to be asking not only Bruce, but me as well. I'd been so caught up in their conversation that I'd practically forgotten that I was actually a person standing there in the room as well.

However, before I could say anything, Bruce spoke for me. "No, why?" he asked.

Lucius smiled, toying with a pen on his desk. "These conversations always used to end with some...unusual requests," he drawled out slowly.

The instant he said that, I knew what he was talking about. Being the supplier of all of Batman's gadgets, Lucius had to assume that Bruce's return might have one of those requests.

Once again, I didn't even get to open my mouth before Bruce interrupted me. He had a slight dark look in his eyes as he looked over at Lucius. "I retired," he stated, clearly wanting to drop the subject as quickly as it had come up.

I frowned at Bruce, disappointed. I finally got to meet Lucius Fox, the man who helped make Batman a reality, and Bruce wasn't even going to let me see any new gadgets? This was not fair, plain and simple.

Somewhat stubbornly, and seeming to have caught my disappointed look, Lucius hit a button. "Let me show you some stuff, anyway," he said.

I grinned widely at Lucius as the bookcase behind him opened into a hidden elevator. His constant defiance of Bruce was making me like him more and more each time he did it. I practically skipped into the elevator next to Lucius, turning to grin and make puppy-dog eyes at Bruce. Bruce rolled his eyes and began to hobble over to the elevator, muttering something under his breath while I could barely contain my giddiness.

As soon as the elevator doors opened to the Applied Sciences wing in the building's lower level, my mouth nearly fell open in utter fascination at everything I saw. Still, I managed to contain myself as Bruce and Lucius exited the elevator after me with Lucius leading the way into the vast, gadget-filled space. My eyes widened as we passed Tumblers with different weapons configurations. They were so ridiculously cool.

"I figured you'd have shut this place down," Bruce observed next to me, hobbling a little to keep up with Lucius and I. Lucius shrugged. I was beginning to think this was one of his regular gestures. I liked it.

"It was always shut down, officially," he told us. I glanced around us at everything.

"But all this new stuff?" I asked Lucius. I was certain it was new, seeing as how I'd never seen any of it down in the Batcave.

Lucius didn't exactly look at Bruce as he spoke. "After your father died, Wayne Enterprises set up fourteen different defense subsidiaries. I've spent years shuttering them and consolidating all the prototypes under one roof. My roof," he explained.

I nodded along with Lucius as we walked. "Why?" I asked, curious to know.

Lucius glanced back at Bruce and I as he walked and talked. "Stop them from falling into the wrong hands. Besides, I thought _someone_ might get some use out of them..." he said, not at all being subtle as he looked directly at Bruce when he said it. I smiled as Bruce simply shook his head at Lucius.

"Sure I can't tempt you to something? Pneumatic crampons? Infrared lenses? Least let me get you something for that leg," Lucius finally said, nodding to Bruce's cane and gimpy leg.

Bruce shook off the comment about his leg, waving Lucius off in the kindest manner he could muster. "It's fine the use it gets these days," he told Lucius.

Lucius smiled at that. "Well, then I have just the thing for an eccentric billionaire who doesn't like to walk..." he said.

Lucius then opened a door, letting us glimpse a sleek vehicle behind it. I didn't miss Bruce's eyes lighting up when he saw it. I couldn't blame him. Whatever kind of vehicle it was, it looked amazing.

"Now you're just showing off," Bruce said, limping beside me into the vehicle's room.

"Defense Department project for tight-geometry urban pacification. Rotors configured for maneuvering between buildings without re-circulation," Lucius told us, watching us eye the vehicle.

I inched closer to the vehicle, my eyes widening in fascination. "What's it called?" I asked.

"It has a long and uninteresting Wayne Enterprises designation. So I took to calling it the Bat," Lucius said. He turned to look at Bruce, a smile on his face. "And yes, Mr. Wayne, it _does_ come in black," he added.

Bruce smiled at Lucius while I touched the Bat's sleek side, marveling. I could still hardly believe I was down here with all this cool stuff.

Bruce came over beside me to look at the Bat as Lucius watched us. "Works great except for the autopilot," Lucius told us.

I looked up at Lucius. "What's wrong with that?" I asked.

Lucius folded his hands together in front of him. "Software-based instability. Take a better mind than mine to fix it," he said.

I touched the Bat again as I raised a brow at Lucius. " _Better_ mind?" I echoed.

Lucius cocked his head a little to the side as he looked at me. "I was trying to be modest. A less busy mind. Yours or Bruce's, perhaps," he suggested.

I looked wistfully at the beautiful machine before me and turned away. It was futile for me to even think I could possibly fix the Bat, what with Bruce not being the Batman anymore. It wasn't like I'd get to have any use of it. Bruce would destroy the Bat before he even let me use one of his more dangerous gadgets. And I was right.

"I told you. I retired, Lucius," Bruce said, shaking his head.

I dropped my eyes to the floor as Bruce took hold of my arm, leading me back towards the elevator. "Again, it was nice meeting you," I told Lucius quietly as we passed by him.

Lucius nodded and waved to us. "And you as well, Emily," he said, watching us as the elevator doors closed and took us back up to the main floor.


End file.
